Newborn only sleeps on me at night - aaagh!

[mistresspenguin]

Lovely scrummy DD1 brought home from hospital 3 days ago, I thought she might sleep better when my milk came in, and she does, but she won't sleep hardly anywhere that isn't me.

During the day, she might be ok to be put in a bouncer after she's fallen asleep at the boob, but at night, she won't sleep anywhere but on me and I'm exhausted. Also, if we try and put her down unsuccessfully after she's fallen asleep, I then seem to have to feed her again to settle her.

Please tell me this will get better, or any techniques you might have for weaning her off only sleeping on me at night? [sleepy]

She is so brand new, she has only just entered the big wide world and doesn't know she is a seperate person to you yet.

Just enjoy it! It will pass!

Ds2 was like this which was a bit of a shock after ds1 who had been happy to go down at night but not in the day. One thing I found worked which a friend recommended was have the carrycot/Moses basket on the bed next to you (had it between me and dh so it couldn't fall off) and then when ds2 had fallen asleep feeding I would carefully transfer him keeping my hand on him all the time and then lie down next to the carry cot keeping my arm around him iyswim, he generally stayed asleep that way and then after the first night sleeping like that I gradually started to withdraw the arm over a couple of nights until I could just put him down without needing to keep my hand on him and then I was able to put the carrycot back on the floor and he's been fine ever since.

Good luck - it is very hard - and try and get some sleep in the day when your oh can hold her

Very normal. It won't last forever

My ds slept on me for the first 4 weeks. Gradually got better at going in his basket for the first part of the night and then on me for the second part. By about 10 weeks he was in his basket all night. Not necessarily asleep, however! Just relax and enjoy the cuddles.

Congratulations! Very normal, all she's knows is you so now she's in the big scary world she wants the comfort of mummy.

It will get better though, I promise

not sure about 'normal' but we have similar and ds is nearly 8 weeks. he has never slept in his moses, bassinet or cot so far. the most we've managed is to lay him on the bed next to me till his first night feed, after that he wants to sleep across my chest till morning. daytime naps are also on me. once he slept in a sling strapped to me, but he now cries with that too.

i am exhausted and haven't slept longer than 3 hours in 8 weeks, and even then i don't really sleep because i am conscious of him all the time. it feels like it will be like this forever :(

My dd is exactly the same - she's nearly 8 weeks old (but was 4 weeks prem). She won't sleep in her Moses basket at all during the day so have to carry her round in a sling. At night we have a cog that attaches to the bed but she won't sleep in that either & will only sleep on my chest. If I put her down in the cot after she falls asleep, she wakes up after a few mins crying & then won't go back to sleep. DH is anxious to get her to sleep in her cot, but I really don't know what to do for the best

Goodness I remember this - was only a few months ago, but feels a world away! It's utterly exhausting isn't it. My advice would be co-sleep. I didn't do this when dd was a newborn, because I didn't want to co-sleep, but I "resorted" to it later when she was going through another very difficult to settle patch. It was so much better and I got so much more sleep, it really made me wish I'd done it when she was a newborn and would have had a whole load more energy!

Good luck and enjoy your newborn cuddles!

Along with the othe posters, I'm going to say that my DD did this too for 6 weeks. I gradually managed to get her to sleep at first besides me in the bed, then after a mid-night feed and falling asleep in my arms I moved her into her cot, but she was on me/in the bed after the final night feed.

Gradually gradually she was sleeping by herself in the cot after 3 months. Although the final sleep was with us until she got too excited (noisy) and was plonked back in the cot. I miss those days....

Funny, I live in sweden and here the baby nurses think that you are 'not doing the proper thing' if you DON'T co-sleep. They are very big on co-sleeping here. If you leave your baby to sleep by themselves then you are considered to somewhat heartless.

PS if your baby is sleeping on your chest remember to turn their head. DD had a flat side (!), which thank god filled out again after she went into the cot. It scared the living daylights out of me.